You may earn a maximum of 3 points toward your final grade by doing the above and answering the questions and submitting them on time (no later than Friday, August, 25). Any worksheets submitted after the deadline will get a 0. You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points, if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammar and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Trifles. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?
Trifles begins the scene of the play at an abandoned farmhouse. it is described as gloomy and disheveled with incomplete work. Three men, the sheriff, attorney, and Mr. Hale lead into the house, followed by the sheriff’s wife and Mrs. Hale. The time period can be assumed to be early 1900’s; as we later infer by the thoughts and actions of the characters in the play, it is definitely a time period where women were restricted from the normal activities men took part in. The people other involved, along with the five listed above, are the farmhouses owners, Mr. and Mrs. Wright. The situation at the beginning of the play is the three men are investigating the murder of Mr. Wright, and based on Mr. Hale’s interaction with his wife, they are finding clues for his murder. Later, the dramatic action includes the two women also, as they find their own clues that lead them to the ultimate discovery.
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play?
The intrusion of the play is when the two women discover the strangled dead bird. This gives them enough evidence to realize that Mr. Wright killed it, probably during his rages or violent episodes. The canary bird, which lived in a cage, was something that Mrs. Wright kept as a symbol of her own marriage and life. Her husband was abusive, and she was “caged” at the gloomy farmhouse because of domestic abuse. Once he killed the bird, it mirrored the idea that she could maybe get killed and couldn’t handle it any longer. It clicks in the women’s’ heads for ideas of Mrs. Wright’s possible motive to kill her husband.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
The unique factor is the fact that thee people are investigating the murder of Mr. Wright, who Mrs. Wright killed one day. The fact that this happened causes a turn of events that lead to the actions in the play later on. If she didn’t kill her husband, none of these events would’ve happened and no one would have figured out she was being abused by her husband and was trapped in her marriage. The events take place at that particular time and place because it is soon after Mr. Hale has gone to talk to Mrs. Wright and figures out he is dead.
4. State the dramatic question or questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
The dramatic questions can be “is it right that the women hid crucial evidence to keep Mrs. Wright innocent in the eyes of the law?” and “can that evidence such as the bird and sewing ever be found to convict Mrs. Wright for murder?”
5. Use Ms. Hale to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is the dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what the character wants (NOTE: In Trifles the wants of Ms. Hale change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles for Ms. Hale.
Mrs. Hale at first wants to comply with the law and wants justice for Mrs. Wright because in the end, she did commit murder. But she realizes through clues from their farmhouse that Mrs. Wright was in a predicament that caused her to do what was her only option. The sheriff and attorney are with them though, so she is afraid to break the law and maybe have consequences for herself also. But as the men seem to insult the dirty towels and mess in the house and blame it on the woman, Mrs. Hale gets more sympathy for her situation and wants to ultimately hide the bird and evidence to keep Mrs. Wright innocent and not convicted. The obstacle to her goal is removed later because the sheriff’s wife agrees with her indirectly to keep Mrs. Wright innocent and helps hide the evidence.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. In your estimation what is the most theatrical moment in Trifles and what happens during that moment which is so important to the outcome of the play?
The most theatrical moment in this play is when Mrs. Hale and the sheriff’s wife decide to protect Mrs. Wright from conviction and hide the bird in the box right before the three men can see. This is the part for me that is crucial to understanding the importance of gender roles in this play. They connect in a way to save a woman from her cold, evil husband and how he mentally tormented her and her belongings. During this scene, this is what guarantees her innocence because they hide the main evidence that could have otherwise brought her to be guilty for murder. This scene is what unites the women.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Trifles. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
Some examples of images include the bird and it being strangled to death. It lived in a cage which represents the symbolic cage that Mrs. Wright was restrained in while being married to her husband in a desolate farmhouse. The strangling of the bird is the foreshadowing of realizing how Mr. Wright is killed. Another example of imagery is the sewing of Mrs. Wright. Her sewing work is described as fidgety and they infer she was being really nervous and on edge about everything. Another example is when the men see the dirty towels and general messiness in the kitchen and surrounding areas. This is important because the women get annoyed that the men think the women should be the ones cleaning and taking care of stuff like that, even while they are here to investigate the crime and not comment on the condition of things in the house. The title “trifle” means something of little value or importance. So, the title is telling us to look for small details or things that might seem insignificant, but they play a big part later on. Mr. Hale says women always worry about trifles, but in this case it is ironic because the women find small clues that lead to a huge conclusion.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Trifles.
Some themes in this play include gender roles, justice, the roles of men vs women, loyalty, womanhood, and the juxtaposition of feelings vs the law.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with Trifles? Is family redefined in Trifles?
Mrs. Wright felt trapped with her family/husband Mr. Wright, and she had no children or friends to keep her company. She was a lonely woman and obviously family was something she longed for but instead her husband was a bad person. Mrs. Hale hides the bird, so this signifies her defying her husband and family to save a fellow woman. She is changing the role of women within a family by doing this.
You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points, if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammar and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
1. In the space below, describe the stasis at the beginning of Trifles. In other words, “Where are we?” “When is it (time, day, and year)?” “Who are the people involved?” “What is the dramatic situation in which the characters find themselves as the play unfolds?
Trifles begins the scene of the play at an abandoned farmhouse. it is described as gloomy and disheveled with incomplete work. Three men, the sheriff, attorney, and Mr. Hale lead into the house, followed by the sheriff’s wife and Mrs. Hale. The time period can be assumed to be early 1900’s; as we later infer by the thoughts and actions of the characters in the play, it is definitely a time period where women were restricted from the normal activities men took part in. The people other involved, along with the five listed above, are the farmhouses owners, Mr. and Mrs. Wright. The situation at the beginning of the play is the three men are investigating the murder of Mr. Wright, and based on Mr. Hale’s interaction with his wife, they are finding clues for his murder. Later, the dramatic action includes the two women also, as they find their own clues that lead them to the ultimate discovery.
2. What is the intrusion that causes the stasis to be broken and the dramatic action to develop, often at an increasingly rapid pace, to the end of the play?
The intrusion of the play is when the two women discover the strangled dead bird. This gives them enough evidence to realize that Mr. Wright killed it, probably during his rages or violent episodes. The canary bird, which lived in a cage, was something that Mrs. Wright kept as a symbol of her own marriage and life. Her husband was abusive, and she was “caged” at the gloomy farmhouse because of domestic abuse. Once he killed the bird, it mirrored the idea that she could maybe get killed and couldn’t handle it any longer. It clicks in the women’s’ heads for ideas of Mrs. Wright’s possible motive to kill her husband.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place?
The unique factor is the fact that thee people are investigating the murder of Mr. Wright, who Mrs. Wright killed one day. The fact that this happened causes a turn of events that lead to the actions in the play later on. If she didn’t kill her husband, none of these events would’ve happened and no one would have figured out she was being abused by her husband and was trapped in her marriage. The events take place at that particular time and place because it is soon after Mr. Hale has gone to talk to Mrs. Wright and figures out he is dead.
4. State the dramatic question or questions that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
The dramatic questions can be “is it right that the women hid crucial evidence to keep Mrs. Wright innocent in the eyes of the law?” and “can that evidence such as the bird and sewing ever be found to convict Mrs. Wright for murder?”
5. Use Ms. Hale to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, that is the dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what the character wants (NOTE: In Trifles the wants of Ms. Hale change as the play progresses). The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles for Ms. Hale.
Mrs. Hale at first wants to comply with the law and wants justice for Mrs. Wright because in the end, she did commit murder. But she realizes through clues from their farmhouse that Mrs. Wright was in a predicament that caused her to do what was her only option. The sheriff and attorney are with them though, so she is afraid to break the law and maybe have consequences for herself also. But as the men seem to insult the dirty towels and mess in the house and blame it on the woman, Mrs. Hale gets more sympathy for her situation and wants to ultimately hide the bird and evidence to keep Mrs. Wright innocent and not convicted. The obstacle to her goal is removed later because the sheriff’s wife agrees with her indirectly to keep Mrs. Wright innocent and helps hide the evidence.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. In your estimation what is the most theatrical moment in Trifles and what happens during that moment which is so important to the outcome of the play?
The most theatrical moment in this play is when Mrs. Hale and the sheriff’s wife decide to protect Mrs. Wright from conviction and hide the bird in the box right before the three men can see. This is the part for me that is crucial to understanding the importance of gender roles in this play. They connect in a way to save a woman from her cold, evil husband and how he mentally tormented her and her belongings. During this scene, this is what guarantees her innocence because they hide the main evidence that could have otherwise brought her to be guilty for murder. This scene is what unites the women.
7. Provide at least three examples of images in Trifles. How does the title of the play help us understand the images in the play? (Remember Ball says that, “An image is the use of something we know that tells us something we don’t know.” He goes on to say that images invoke and expand, rather than define and limit.”)
Some examples of images include the bird and it being strangled to death. It lived in a cage which represents the symbolic cage that Mrs. Wright was restrained in while being married to her husband in a desolate farmhouse. The strangling of the bird is the foreshadowing of realizing how Mr. Wright is killed. Another example of imagery is the sewing of Mrs. Wright. Her sewing work is described as fidgety and they infer she was being really nervous and on edge about everything. Another example is when the men see the dirty towels and general messiness in the kitchen and surrounding areas. This is important because the women get annoyed that the men think the women should be the ones cleaning and taking care of stuff like that, even while they are here to investigate the crime and not comment on the condition of things in the house. The title “trifle” means something of little value or importance. So, the title is telling us to look for small details or things that might seem insignificant, but they play a big part later on. Mr. Hale says women always worry about trifles, but in this case it is ironic because the women find small clues that lead to a huge conclusion.
8. Ordinarily, there are many themes in most plays. List the themes in Trifles.
Some themes in this play include gender roles, justice, the roles of men vs women, loyalty, womanhood, and the juxtaposition of feelings vs the law.
9. Most American plays have something to do with family and/or family relationships. What does family have to do with Trifles? Is family redefined in Trifles?
Mrs. Wright felt trapped with her family/husband Mr. Wright, and she had no children or friends to keep her company. She was a lonely woman and obviously family was something she longed for but instead her husband was a bad person. Mrs. Hale hides the bird, so this signifies her defying her husband and family to save a fellow woman. She is changing the role of women within a family by doing this.